Sewing-machine



(No Model.)

F. W. MERRICK.

SEWING MACHINE.

Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

N. Firms. Plwlo-lhhognpiwr. Washington. ac.

UNITED STATES PATENT @rrrcn.

FRANK NV. MERRIOK, OF SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS.

SEWlNG- MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,897, dated September 1888.

(No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK W. Mansion, of Somcrville, county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the drawings accompanying and forming a part hereof, in which Figure l is a front elevation of the post of the machine with the front plate removed, showing the needle-operating mechanism with my improved castoil' attached. Fig. 2 is a partial sectional side view of the same. Fig. 3 is an elevation similar to Fig. 1, but showing the parts in another position. Fig. 4 is a detail view to illustrate a modification.

The object of my invention is the construc tion of an improved cast-off mechanism for sewing-machines; and it consists in the constructions and combinations of parts specified in the claims at the end of this specification, whereby a cast-off which is arranged rearwardly of the hooked needle (or on the side of the needle opposite its hook) will be caused to pass forward through the loop of the needle-thread to disengage the same from the hook of the needle and hold it in position for the needle to pass freely downward through it with the next succeeding loop.

My invention may be applied, as will be obvious, to sewingmachines of various styles, and I have not, therefore, deemed it necesssary to show in the drawings anything more than the parts of a machine to which my improvement is directly applied. The needlepost and needlebar are shown as patented by me, Letters Patent No. 343,883, dated June 8, 1886.

A represents the frame of the machine, which carries the work-plate a. The needle-post B is pivoted at its lower end on a rocker shaft, 0, and is given a vibratory movement by means of a cam and yoke situated behind it, as will he more fully understood by reference to my said patent.

D is the needle-bar, which carries the needle (I and which slides in a slot or groove in the needle-post and is actuated by a link, f, pivoted thereto at its upper end and at its lower end pivoted to a disk, E, fast to the lower or main shaft of the machine.

For the purpose of carrying and actuating the cast-off 7;, l have provided a cast-off can rier or piece, H, which is provided with avertical slot, j, through which the pivotpin e of the needle-bar passes. The slotj is somewhat less in length than the throw of the needle-bar,

so that at the extreme of its downward throw the pivot-pin 6 comes in contact with the lower end of the slot and moves the cast-off barrier, retracting the cast-oh and allowing it to slip the loop. A projection, m, at the lower end of the cast-off carrier H is connected by a spi-. ral spring, a, with a pin on the needlepost, and the tension of this spring serves to raise the cast-off carrier whenever the pivot-pin 6 has begun its upward movement with the needle'bar. (See Fig. 3.) W hen the cast-off is retracted, its point lies to the rear of the line of the needle and directly behind the loop when the needle is at its lowest point. It is necessary, therefore, that the cast-off should move upward and forward, carrying its point directly across the line of the needle. To obtain this movement, the cast-off carrier H is provided with the oblique slot 1), through which a pin, 0', passes into the needlepost. When the cast-off is retracted, its bar H is down and back in the position shown, Fig. 1, and when it is up and forward the pin 1' is at the bottom of the slot 1), and the parts assume the position shown, Fig. 3. The cast-oifcarrier works on the face of the needlebar and post, and it is necessary to offset the cast-0d and make it of the shape shown in Fig. 2 in order that its point may cross the line of the needle. The cast-off is also bent forward and upward in the manner shown in Fig. 1. By giving the castoff this shape and moving it in the direction described its point moves at right angles, or substantially so, to the position of the loop when the needle is at its lowest point, (see Fig. 1,) thus enabling it with greater facility and certainty to pass into the loop. After entering the loop its movement is across the track of the needle and to a certain extent upward, with the needle thus surely disengaging the thread from the hook.

In the modification of my invention shown in Fig. 4 the castoff bar H, instead of having the inclined slot- 1), is connected by a link, at, pivoted at c to the cast-off bar and at b to the needle'post, as 13, Figs. 1 and 2, and the said cast-off bar is in sliding contact with the needle-bar and is operated by the pin 6, moving in the slot j, as in the other form of my invention. It will thus be apparent that when the said cast-off bar is raised (by contact of the pin 6 with the upper wall of the slotj or otherwise) the cast-off will be moved forward, as shown in dotted lines to cause its point to pass into the loop of needle-thread to disengage the loop from the hook of the needle, the operation of this modification of my invention be ing thus essentially the same as the form of my inver'ition first described.

It will be observed that with both forms of my invention herein shown the cast-off carrier has a sliding connection with the needlebar or needle-post, so that the said cast-off carrier reciprocates up and down bodily,while its upper end has a back-and-forth or vibratory movement to cause the offset upper end of the cast-off to cross the path of the needle to take the loops of thread from the hook of the latter. In the machine shown by my former patent, No. 343,383, the cast-off had an offset-point which crossed the path'of the needie; but as the cast-off carrier was pivoted, so that it could not move endwise bodily,agreater throw was required for the needle than is necessary in the present instance to enableihe cast-off to remove the loops properly.

What I claim iS- 1. .In a sewing-machine, a hooked needle, its operating mechanism, and a cast-off arranged adjacent to said needle and on the same side of the work-plate that the needle is, said castoff being also rearward of the needle (oron the side thereof opposite its hook) and being bent or offset to have its point extend to the linein which the needle reciprocates,combined with a reciprocating and vibrating cast-off carrier also on the same side of the work-plate that the needle is, and having a sliding or endwise movement relative to the needle-bar or carrier, and mechanism for operating said castoff carrier to impart endwise and vibrating movements thereto, whereby as the cast-ofi' moves bodily forward and upward its point will be caused to cross the path of the needle and take a loop of thread from the hook there- 2. In a sewing-machine, a hooked needle, its operating mechanism, and a cast-off arranged rearward of the said needle, (or on the side thereof opposite its hook.) the point of said cast-off being bent or offset to extend to the v path of the said needle. combined with a carrier for the said cast-off arranged adjacent to the needlebar and provided with an oblique guidingslot near its upper end, a pin to enter said slot, and means for reciprocating said carrier to cause the point of the cast-off to cross the path of the needle and take a loop of thread from the hook thereof asthe cast off moves bodily forward and upward, subof, substantially as set forth. 5o

stantially as set forth. 6 

